


Scoring Chance

by evinjb22



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Hockey, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers, Alternate Universe - Normal High School, Alternate Universe - Sports, Bisexuality, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Hockey, Korra POV, Korra is a jock, Korrasami - Freeform, Korrasami is Canon, asami is a gay genius mechanic mess, basically a feel-good sports movie but make it gay and korra, early 2000s, korra/bolin brotp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:07:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26707213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evinjb22/pseuds/evinjb22
Summary: Korrasami High school/Hockey AUKorra's a Junior at Patola Mountain High School, and for her, there's three things she's shooting for. The center position on the hockey team, a decent scholarship, and a chance with Asami Sato.  The way she sees it, she'll be graduated before she can accomplish any of the three, but a full hockey season ahead of her could be a lot more eventful than she's anticipating.Modern AU, no bending. Set in a made-up town in Massachusetts in 2005. Rated teen and up for strong language, some intense scenes (nothing out of the ordinary for a public high school), some homophobia in later chapters (will add warnings when they apply), and teen romance.
Relationships: Baatar Jr./Kuvira (Avatar), Bolin/Opal (Avatar), Jinora/Kai (Avatar), Korra/Asami Sato, Varrick/Zhu Li Moon
Comments: 26
Kudos: 118





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. So, my main notes will be at the end, but I have some main things to preface, which I did touch on in the description. This is a modern AU, there's no bending or avatar. It's set in a made-up town on the outskirts of Boston, Massachusetts, in 2005 (the music will fit accordingly, if it's brought up, for anyone that's into early 2000s alt rock and pop >:) ). In general this is gonna be pretty PG-13. There is swearing, and basically anything that 16 and 17 year olds normally talk about or joke about goes (reasonably, obviously). There may be some individual chapters where I need to add some warnings, like if there's gonna be a particularly nasty fight between two characters, or if there's gonna be homophobia, or stuff like that. Also, while I am a rising hockey fan, I'm still fairly new to the game, so forgive and feel free to correct if you find any mistakes. Enjoy!

I’ve come to the conclusion that time is broken. There is no reason for this class to take so long. 

Sure, it’s a fairly interesting class. I mean, at least it’s not math. Not that I’m great at writing, either, but creative writing is loose enough where you can be mediocre and still do alright. And Coach Tenzin teaches it, so I know at least that the teacher isn’t evil.

And I get to sit three desks away from the single most stunning person in the whole school. I mean, Asami Sato is practically an angel that could kick someone’s ass into a knot. She’s hot, brilliant, a literal genius, and good with her hands (definitely haven’t thought about that one a lot…)

Still, I need this class to be done. And then I need the two hours of practice, getting our stuff packed, and the bus ride to the rink to be done as well. Exhibition games are kinda dumb to a lot of people, since they don’t count towards points, but I couldn’t care less. The exhilaration of being on the ice is enough.

I’ve finally zoned out enough to the point where time might maybe pass me by, when I feel something hit the back of my head.

“Korraaaaa!” Someone whisper-yells behind me, and I groan.

“Bolin, can’t you see I’m trying to phase out of existence?”

He waves me off immediately. “Phase out on your own time, I don’t understand what the hell this means!”

Bolin definitely isn’t stupid. He’s actually really smart in a lot of ways. He’s extremely empathetic, an incredible goalie, and knows a lot about ancient history. He’s not naïve either. Well, not entirely, at least. (Okay, maybe a little.) But he is a bit spacey in a lot of ways. That’s not to say that I’m smart or attentive, either. It’s actually part of the reason we get along so well, is that we’re really alike in a lot of ways. Bolin isn’t great in school, though, and no matter how many study sessions we have, or how many times his brother Mako drills him on the same concepts, he still never passes a C average. 

“What don’t you get?” 

The assignment isn’t hard, but I guess it is kinda vague. We’ve been using one-word prompts for the past two days, and the prompt that we just got was “serendipity”. 

Bolin looks down at his paper angrily. “I don’t even get the word! How am I supposed to write a mini-story about it?”

It takes a second for me to find an answer, mostly since I was actually just planning on not doing it. “Well, I guess...I mean, it’s something peaceful that happens by chance, or something like that, right?”

“...Yeah?”

“Then, what do you find peaceful?” I ask, as if I don’t already know some of the goofy-ass answers he’ll come up with.

He shrugs. “I dunno, like, small animals? Like Pabu.”

I roll my eyes, but can’t help but smile. Pabu is his pet ferret. Adorable little slinky rat. 

“Just write about a dude finding a small animal or whatever, Bo.”

He nods and grins. “I can do that.”

“Wonderful,” I mumble, and turn my attention to a certain someone else. 

She’s completely lost in the prompt. Not surprising, since she probably got it instantly. Anyone who knows her knows she’s much more STEM-oriented, but smart people are good at everything, or at least Asami is. Smart. And good at everything.

Not that I know her all that well.

Asami and I have never really been close. We know each other in the way hot girls know people on sports teams, but it’s not like I’m a football player, or a dude, and have girls all over me. We’ve talked before, but surface level, besides me making the occasional idiot of myself. She’s a grade above me, and practically a genius, so she takes a bunch of Genius Senior classes, and I...well, I don’t. We get the rare elective class together, like finance last year or creative writing this year, and we're in Latin together since she started a year late, but besides that I only see her at parties or school events or games, and she almost always has a pack of friends around her. Which makes sense. I mean, everyone likes her. But it still makes me a little jealous, if I’m being honest.

“Korra’s in loooove,” Bolin whispers behind me, and I don’t even have to look at him to elbow him.

“Shut up,” I mutter, trying to hide the blush on my face as I turn to him.

Bolin’s the only one who knows how I feel about Asami. He’s also one of the only two people who know that I’m bi. I told him the latter back in freshman year, after having it eat away at me for almost a year. He supported me with open arms (literally), which I am forever grateful for. Massachusetts has always been pretty progressive, but that doesn’t mean everyone is accepting. They just legalized gay marriage here last year, and there’s still plenty of people who are vocally upset about it. Soon after I came out to him, I fell hard for Asami.

Bolin grins. “You’re making heart eyes at her, literally.”

“No I’m not!” I protest, knowing full well that it’s a lie. I’m not sure if it’s obvious to anyone else, but Bolin can tell easily by now. It bothers me a lot less than I pretend it does. Honestly, sometimes it’s nice to be able to talk to him about it. Relieves it in a way, and Asami deserves to be made a big deal of, even if it's just in Bolin's basement while playing Halo 2 with him and Pabu as audience. Plus, it’s only fair, since I let him gush about his girlfriend, Opal.

“Why don’t you talk to her, Korra?” He suggests.

I raise an eyebrow and chuckle nervously. “Talk to her? What? I...”

He rolls his eyes and laughs. “You know you’re allowed to talk to her, right?” Oh really, genius. “See if she’s coming to the game.”

“Of course she is. She’s probably coming with her friends.”

“Right, but if you ask her if she’s going, you’re pretty much asking if she wants to watch you play.” He winks.

I laugh. “Yeah, but that’s...scary.”

The bell rings, and people begin to get up around us.

“Suit yourself,” Bolin shrugs. “See you in 15. I gotta find Opal.”

“Yeah, see you,” I mumble after he gets up. My attention turns, and I notice Asami hasn’t left. I pretend to not have noticed, and pick up my bags and head toward the door.

Our paths intercept (intentionally), and I look up at her. “Oh, hey Asami!”

“Hi, Korra,” she smiles. “Where are you going? I thought the hockey team always meets in this room after school.”

Shit. “Uh, yeah, I’m just...going to the bathroom.”

“With your bags?” She points out. I feel my face burst into flames and she stifles a small laugh with her hand.

I adjust my collar and manage a smile. “Uh, so anyway...you going to the game tonight?”

She tilts her head. “Don’t I always? Can’t wait to see you win.”

Both of us laugh. “Definitely.” And then I have an actually good idea. “Oh, um, there’s gonna be a bonfire. After the game, at Iroh’s house. Would you...uh, you’re welcome to come. I-if you want, of course.”

She smiles, and her smile is so warm that it’s as if it’s summer again. Or maybe I’m just a gushy, stupid, hopeless romantic. 

“Sounds fun. I’d love to.”

I nearly jump at that, before remembering that, god Korra, you’re ridiculous. “Uh, awesome! I’ll, uh…”

“I’ll see you,” Asami finishes for me. She waves, and heads out of the door and into the hallway, leaving me grinning like an idiot in the middle of the room.

“That was real smooth,” a voice calls from the back of the room.

I whip around to see Coach Tenzin at his desk, feet up, reading a newspaper. He’s not even looking at me, but he might as well be staring deadpanned, judging my dumb ass.

“That...didn’t happen.” I blurt.

“Yes it did,” he counters, turning a page. 

He’s the other one that knows I’m bi. I went to him about it last year, because I thought my mom had found out and I needed to talk to someone about it who wasn’t my dorky best friend. It turns out my mom didn’t find out, but it was really nice to talk to an adult about it, and it made my bond with Tenzin closer.

Still, he could be annoying, in a weird Dad-figure type way.

I drop my bags at a desk and decide that I do actually need to go to the bathroom.

\---

“Mako, why didn’t you bring any snacks? I asked you to!” Bolin cries.

His brother doesn’t turn his attention from his stick that he’s re-taping, even as the bus lurches over what has to be a pothole. “No, you didn’t. Plus, I wouldn’t have wanted to, anyway.”

Mako’s a grumpy, serious, boring jock, but only if you don’t know anything about him. He’s a senior, and a year and a half older than Bolin. If you didn’t know them, you’d have no idea that they’re brothers. Not only are their personalities wildly different, but they don’t really look alike. Whereas Bolin’s stocky, beefy, and medium-height, Mako’s tall and lean and firm. It suits his stoicism and makes him a perfect candidate to be a future Marine, and it does get a lot of girls to throw themselves at him. I do have to admit, I did have a bit of a thing for him in 8th grade. He was my best friend’s older brother, and the only person besides my weird-ass cousins and Iroh that I knew who were in high school, and even though he was in the middle of puberty at the time, I thought he was the hottest person ever. I got over it after a few months, especially after making things between us sorta awkward, and we moved past it at the beginning of my Freshman year. Even still, I kinda feel embarrassed about it.

“You’re so mean, Mako,” Bolin complains, and Mako just shrugs.

“Good.”

Iroh laughs from next to him. “It’s okay, Bolin. I’ve got lots of grub for later. Besides, if you eat a bunch now, you’ll feel gross on the ice.”

Bolin considers this. “Yeah, that’s fair.”

Iroh returns his attention to his physics textbook, and Bolin takes out his phone to start blasting ringtones and texting Opal.

Iroh is interesting. He’s the perfect best friend for Mako, that’s for sure. He’s all of Mako’s best qualities, plus charm and charisma. And cheekbones. The two have been friends for longer than Bolin and I have been friends, which is saying something. Mako’s awkwardness doesn’t exist for Iroh. It translates, and instead of awkward, Iroh is so extremely agreeable. A few years ago, it annoyed me. I thought he was full of himself, and so damn perfect and righteous, it annoyed me. But he’s way more humble than you’d think. I’ve come to respect him a lot.

“Bo?” Mako calls, still focused on the tape. I swear, he re-tapes it at least every three games. It’s ridiculous.

Bolin looks over at Mako.

“Quit texting your girlfriend. You’re wasting grandma’s money.”

\---

I fly across the ice and skid to a halt next to Bolin. “How you feeling?”

He swipes off his helmet, brushes his already sweaty hair off of his forehead, and reveals his grin. “Stoked! I’ve been waiting months for this.”

“Same,” I smile. “Ready to kick some Badger ass.”

Bolin’s attention turns to something behind me, and he smirks. “Hey Korra, your girlfriend’s here.”

My eyes widen and I turn. Asami’s there, with a group of other seniors. She notices my gaze and waves, and I’ve never believed in God, but suddenly I’m thanking Him that I'm far enough from her for the deep redness in my face to be visible.

“She’s not my girlfriend…” I mumble.

“Yet.”

“Sure...yet,” I agree, then laugh. “I’m gonna head over there.”

Bolin’s eyes widen, and he raises an eyebrow. “Whoa, where’d that confidence come from?”

I shrug as I skate backwards toward Asami. “Not sure. Yet.”

I turn, and she’s practically already at the glass. “Hey, Korra.”

“Hey. Glad you came.”

She smiles. “Wouldn’t miss the kickoff game. Hey, does that offer still stand for the bonfire later?”

A wide grin paints my face and I nod. “Absolutely.”

The whistle blows, and I turn to see Coach Tenzin standing in the center of our blue line. “That’s my cue.”

Asami chuckles. “Alright then. Score some goals.”

For you, anything, I nearly say, but instead I wave goodbye and skate toward my goofy-ass bald coach.

\---

Time seemed to slow down as the ref was dropping the puck. Iroh stood a few feet away from me, face to face with one of the forwards on the other team. If Iroh wins the face-off, it’s most likely going to Baatar or me.

I don’t even have enough time to take a full breath before the puck is falling through the air. It hits the ice, and a second later it’s sailing backward right at me. The puck glides against my stick, and I rush toward the opposing net, kicking the game off.

The adrenaline is addicting. The first period is somewhat slow-going at first, but it’s completely normal, especially for the exhibition game. Still, I can feel it in my blood as I’m gliding back and forth on the ice. 

With four minutes left in the first, the first bit of action finally starts. The Badgers get called for icing, and I’m picked for the face-off. 

Once we’re in the Badger’s defensive zone, I take my spot in one of the face-off circles and bend forward, getting ready to swipe the puck. It’s dropped, and I scoop it, flinging it toward Kai, a freshman on the team. 

The kid’s ridiculously fast, and in no time he’s behind the enemy net.

I can tell what he’s doing the second he’s back there. He heads for the net, and acts like he’s going to tip it in. The last second, he flies the puck to me, and in one continuous motion, I receive the puck and sail it into the net. The whole thing feels like it happens in slow motion, but before I know it, my teammates are on my shoulders.

The cheers, the buzzer, and the hugs from my teammate all make my eyes swell, and I hold the other guys close, whooping along with them.

God, I love this game.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yee. Haw. First fanfic I've written since I was in 8th grade (yikes). Even though this chapter is just introducing characters and some plot elements and stuff, I'm still proud of it. I have the plot thought out, so I don't expect this to die in the middle like I used to do in middle school, lmao. Also, I feel like I should say this: I'm a bi dude, and even though I get to hear plenty of rants from my best friend about how gay she is, I don't know as much about the whole wlw experience as I would if I were...well, a girl, haha. I don't see it happening, but correct me if I do or say something wrong! Anyway, love you guys, later bugs!  
> -Evin


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kinda short (oops) but I wanted to end it early because I want the next chapter to be all about what happens after the first game. You'll see what I mean.  
> Also, for anyone that follows hockey...Tampa won the cup. Thoughts? I know I would have rather had a Stars win, but oh well.  
> Anyway, enjoy!

The rest of the game so far has been going almost as smoothly as the first period. We didn’t score anymore after my goal in the first period, but the Badgers didn’t, either. Intermission was really laid back. None of us were even close to tired, and there was nothing to stress over.

Second period was pretty eventful. Badgers scored, but then we got a power play and hauled in two points. Bolin also made a really clean save, which he’s undoubtedly gonna gush about later.

End of the second is when we both started to falter a little. When my legs started to feel thick and heavy, when the heat under my helmet was starting to make me feel tired despite having chugged two monsters after school. Which may not have been a great idea, but oh well. Our defense was doing really good. Our offense was a little off...oops. But, we never lost the lead.

It’s now second intermission, and I can hear the band’s drumline doing something crazy through the walls.

Iroh sits down next to me and hands me some ice cold water, and without hesitating, I untie my hair and pour some over my head.

“You holding up?” he asks.

I nod. “Pretty well, my stamina’s just not fully there yet.”

“It’ll come back. It’s just the first game,” he assures me.

“Yeah, true. How about you?”

He grins. “Fantastic. Completely in my element.”

And it’s true. He hasn’t wavered once yet in this game. I’m jealous, impressed, and slightly annoyed all at the same time.

Iroh gets up to go talk to Mako, and I stretch a little, trying to regain some momentum. I finish the rest of the water Iroh gave me and pull my hair back behind my head. I chopped it a few months ago so that it rests a little bit below my jaw, and it’s pretty damn convenient.

Soon enough, intermission is over. I grab my stick and helmet, and head back to the ice.

I’m on the bench for the first few minutes, and I can’t really complain. It gives me a few more minutes to regain my composure. I should be paying attention to the game, but my mind wanders.

Without meaning to, I find myself looking at Asami. I’m not even really staring, just zoning out, and it’s nice to have something pretty to zone out to. But we make eye contact, and my face flushes as I return to reality. She doesn’t seem to mind, as she just laughs and waves, and I can’t help but smile and lift my fatass glove in an attempt to wave back.

“Korra!”

Shit.

Tenzin glares at me as he sends me back on the ice, and I high-five Kai as I take his place.

The puck’s in our zone, so I sail to one of the opposing offence players. Our defence keeps it away from the goal (thanks Wei Beifong) and eventually Baatar swipes it away. We all fly toward the Badger goal, and at the blue line, Baatar sends the puck to me. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I see someone heading toward me. I continue forward. If I can pull through for a few more seconds, I have a good shot at the goal. I’m so focused on that, I barely realize I’m about to get barreled into until it’s happening.

One dude shoves me into the glass, and we instantly start fighting for the puck. The other guy is bigger, but I have better control. I’m about to send the puck free when another guy crashes into me as well. The refs should have blown the whistle by now, I can tell from the fact that my shoulder hates me. But we’re still in play, and I’ve completely lost the upper hand.

It’s a split second decision, but I find an opening and kick the puck away with my skate. Someone on my team receives it, and the two guys that were on me lay off. I skate by one of the refs and make a wide gesture so he knows I think he’s an idiot, then continue toward the action.

The guy who I passed to, one of the more quiet sophomores, loses the puck. It’s led back toward our goal, and I stay back near the center, near some of the opposing defense. 

Mako heads toward the guy with the puck, getting ready to shove it out of his control. The guy tries to get to Bolin, but takes too much time winding back, and Mako swipes it away and slams past the other guy.

Before anything can even happen, Mako and I make eye contact and he sends the puck to me. Iroh is by my side in no time, and we head toward the goal. We shuffle it between each other a few times, and once we’re deep past the blue line, I slide toward the glass and let the puck ride the wall.

Iroh and one of the opposing defensemen intercept it at about the same time. I slam into the other guy, knocking him off balance just barely enough for Iroh to wrestle free. My shoulder’s screaming now, I probably tore a muscle or something, not something that I haven’t done before and not something that I really care about. 

I stay in the other dude’s way so he can’t get to Iroh. It’s a kinda messy way to play, but I’m not really worried about it. There’s only about 5 minutes left in the game. 

Iroh skates past the goalie and practically places the puck inside an opening and into the goal. The buzzer goes off, the crowd yells, we all hold each other, and yet again I am intoxicated. 

\---

4-1 victory may not sound pretty, but it definitely sounds alive. All around me is chanting, whooping, singing. 

“I believe that we just won!” Bolin cries from next to me, and we all start echoing. I can’t help but laugh. We’re all such idiots and I don’t think I’ll ever find a group of people that feel more like family.

The energy doesn’t drop, even once we get back to the school. Bolin, Mako, Iroh, and I stay back and help Tenzin put away the equipment once we get back to the school, and most guys head to Iroh’s house where we’re all meeting.

I’m helping Tenzin put away the med kit when he says, “Don’t do any drugs. At least not cocaine”

I raise an eyebrow at him. “Okay?”

“Okay.” He pauses. “You played really well tonight, Korra.”

I grin. “Thanks, Tenzin.”

“Just don’t get so distracted,” he says. There’s no hostility in his voice, though. I know he’s just picking on me. Even still, my face heats up in a mixture of shame, embarrassment, and just the thought of Asami in general.

He gives me a rare small smile, to let me know he’s not mad and he understands, and I laugh nervously. 

“I guess I can keep it in during the game,” I chuckle. 

After everything is put away, we say goodbye to Tenzin and exit to the parking lot. Mako gets a ride with Iroh and lets Bolin drive the mediocre Ford that they share. I hop in with Bolin.

“You gotta get a license,” Bolin jokes, even though I know he doesn’t ever mind driving me.

I’d get a license, but, well, I can’t. I just plain suck at driving. I have my permit, because that's not hard to get, and I’ve taken my test three times already, and failed all three times. The second time I nearly caused an accident. It was pretty wild.

I stick my tongue out at Bolin, and he laughs as we follow Iroh and Mako out of the parking lot.

“So...you nervous?” Bo asks out of nowhere.

“Huh?” I ask, but then I realize what he means. “Oh.”

He grins. “Your dream girl’s going to a bonfire at her ex’s best friend’s house in the bitch-cold November weather, at night, to see you.”

“She’s not just going for me…”

“Who else would she be going for?”

I shrug. “Her and Iroh get along just fine. He’s waaay more popular than I am. Plus, the hockey team’s not gonna be the only ones there.”

“Oh, right, I forgot. She’s going so that she can hang out with Kuvira.” Bolin mocks, and I laugh. Kuvira is Baatar Jr.’s girlfriend, and it’s pretty well known that Asami doesn’t really get along with either of them. Her and Baatar are competing for Valedictorian (and are trying to out-engineer each other), and as far as I can guess, her and Kuvira just have a huge grudge on each other. Kuvira can be pretty harsh or abrasive, but I don’t really have a problem with her. Then again, I barely talk to her.

“Okay, fair. But there’s plenty of other people going. I don’t wanna get my hopes up, anyway,” I explain. Because really, there’s no reason to. She’s beautiful and perfect. I’m loud and brash and dumb. Plus, the chances of her liking girls are practically none. So why even let myself get disappointed?

Bolin seems to notice that I’m pulled too deep into my thoughts, because he turns his radio up full blast to reveal Coming Clean by Green Day.

He waits for my smile to look away, and copies it when he sees it. 

“God, Bo, I don’t deserve you,” I laugh.

He just shrugs. “You’re stuck with me no matter what, buddy. A life without the homies is no way to live.”

It doesn’t take long to get to Iroh’s house, since he lives pretty close to the school. There’s already a line of cars going up his street, and I can hear mediocre rock music coming from the backyard.

Naturally, I spot Asami’s car pretty quickly. Her dad is literally the number one car guy in the state. He owns some auto parts business and also runs repairs, and Asami helps with the repairs in her free time, so not only does she know everything about cars, but she knows which ones are good and she can afford the good ones. Apparently she’s technically owned her car, an original ‘64 Mustang, since before she even turned 16.

Bolin unlocks the car and kills the engine, and we both exit. Mako and Iroh exit their car, parked in front of ours.

“Looks like the party started without me,” Iroh says with a grin.

“The rest of the team stole your house, man,” Bolin adds. “Better wring ‘em for it.”

“Might have to.”

We all head straight to the backyard, which is pretty hefty in size. Both of Iroh’s parents were in the military (just like he plans to be), high ranking, and his grandpa was a Navy four-star admiral. They have quite some money to their name. It makes his house perfect for bonfire parties.

The fire’s already going, but it’s still small and already dying. Mako grabs an axe and splits a log to add, and Iroh heads inside to bring out some drinks. Bolin and I walk over to his girlfriend Opal, who’s messing with her brother Wing.

“Wow, babe, give the poor guy a break!” Bolin jokes.

Wing looks pleadingly at Opal. “Yeah, give me a break!” I can’t help but laugh. Wing and Wei are such blockheads sometimes that seeing them cut down a notch is hilarious.

We make small conversation for a while. There’s a lot of people, but there hasn’t been enough time for the party to settle. I still feel sorta awkward, and I’m sure I will be for a bit. It's not like I can't handle people, or parties, but I can't stand the beginning of a party. Nobody's had anything to drink, everyone's still unsure of where to sit or what to do. And I'm fairly outgoing, but I'm not really the one that gets the party going.

I’m considering making a break for the bathroom when someone comes up behind me.

“Hey, Korra! I was looking for you.”

I turn and look up at her stunning face and nearly drop my drink.

“Oh, god! Hi, uh...hey, Asami!” I laugh nervously, and I'm worried I look weird, but she just joins me.

“There’s so many people, I wasn’t sure where you were. Congrats on the win, by the way. You played awesome,” she says.

I grin. “Yeah, I guess I was pretty damn good out there. But thank you. I’m just hoping we can keep that streak going.”

“I’m sure you will,” she assures me.

I glance at a few empty lawn chairs by the fire. “Hey, uh, you wanna go sit over there?”

She nods. “I’d love to.”

Bolin and I make eye contact as I’m walking together, and he wiggles his eyebrows. I flip him off discreetly, but can’t help laughing to myself. Tonight may be very interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh, spicy! To be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of this chapter. Partially because I still suck at writing about hockey, and partly because Korra's relationship with Asami is still really awkward at this point. That should change soon, though, so stay tuned, lmao. Either way, it just feels very "filler" to me, and I may just be overthinking that. But the next one should be good. I'm excited for the bonfire chapter. Partially because bonfire parties are my personal favorite kinds of parties, and I have a pretty fun idea for how I want this to play out.  
> Let me know how you liked it, and if you have any feedback!  
> Later bugs,  
> Evin


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New England bonfire parties await! The one thing that isn't accurate is that no one's playing football or manhunt, but oh well.

Asami and I have been making awkward small talk for the past 15 minutes, and while I love it, I wish I could get past feeling so small and dorky and...well, awkward around her. I’m considering moving up from soda to alcohol, just to get rid of my nervousness, when a certain someone walks up to the fire and grabs Bolin from his girlfriend.

“Well, hey, friends!” Varrick yells.

From the lawn I hear Mako groan. “Who invited Varrick?”

Bolin shrinks and says, “I did.”

People either love or hate Varrick. Bolin loves him. Mako hates him. Asami also hates him, and she glares at him as he walks up to us.

“Aw, don’t look like that, Sato. How you been? Korra.”

She rolls her eyes. “Piss off, Varrick. I’m not buying from you.”

He laughs. “Can’t a guy greet an old pal?”

“We’re not pals,” she counters.

“Hey, Varrick, if we need anything we’ll let you know. Some space would be nice, alright?” I say, nicely telling him off.

He winks. “You do that.”

Varrick’s not a bad guy, but he can be a lot to handle. Plus, he’s done some legally questionable shit. But, he is the best known dealer at school, which will do you good for popularity points. I’m sure half of everyone here will be high by the end of the night. At least half of everyone that isn’t on the team. Some of the guys are strict on themselves with the “no-drug” policy. I’ve just never tried it.

Asami sighs and laughs at the same time. “Thanks. I can’t stand him. He thinks he knows everything.”

I shrug. “I mean, he isn’t an idiot.”

“I’m better though,” she counters, grinning.

“True, you'd crush him. Hey, uh, do you drink?”

She shrugs. “Yeah, but not tonight. I’m my own ride. I’ll walk with you if you wanna get a drink, though.”

“That’d be great,” I grin.

I grab some can of shitty beer, and Asami finds a seltzer, and we come back to the fire to find our seats taken.

“Oh, uh…” I don’t know what to suggest.

“We can sit on the ground,” she says. I’m surprised she’s willing; the ground is freezing, even right by the fire. But we do anyway, and listen to some of the stories being told.

Slowly, we huddle closer together, and I don’t realize it until our shoulders brush together. I can feel my face heat up, but I don’t say anything. She doesn’t move, so I don’t either.

The party finally starts picking up when the inevitable truth or dare starts. People have had varying amounts to drink, but nobody’s drunk yet. I’m only slightly buzzed, still fully aware of everything but much less on edge.

Wei runs straight toward the fire after being dared to jump over it. It’s the dumbest idea ever, and I actually almost intervene, but he jumps over it just fine despite having had four drinks. When he wanders back to his chair, still laughing, he looks at Bolin.

“Bo, my guy, truth or dare?”

Bolin pretends to consider, even though he always picks the same thing. “Hit me with a truth.”

Nearly everyone groans, but Wei just says, “What’s the dirtiest thing you and my sister have done in public?”

Both Bolin and Opal turn a deep shade of red, eliciting a chorus of “oooh”’s from the rest of us.

“Um...movies, and...uh…” Bolin mutters out, and we all get what he’s saying.

Opal glares at Wei, then Wing, then Baatar. “If any of you three tell Mom, I’m breaking all of your noses.”

Wei puts his hands up in self defense. “Hey, my lips are sealed, sis.”

“Your turn, Bolin,” Varrick chimes, and Bolin instantly turns to me.

Shit.

“Korra, truth or dare.”

God, I am royally screwed. He’s gonna do something and I’m so screwed I’m so screwed I’m so-

“Korra?’

“Uh...dare,” I stutter, figuring it’s not as bad as the chance of getting the question ‘who’s your crush’.

‘Please go easy on me, Bolin,’ I think as he pretends to ponder.

“I dare you to...let the person to your left sit in your lap for a round.” He smirks. 

I turn to Asami, wide eyed. Her face is about as red as mine feels, but we both laugh, albeit nervously. She scoots onto my lap, and I have no idea where to put my hands. I end up awkwardly resting them by my side.

My imagination inevitably starts running wild, and I bite my tongue in attempt to snap out of it. I turn to Kai, who’s a bit too drunk for a freshman (and I hate all of us for letting that happen), and ask him truth or dare.

“Dare,” he says confidently. I decide to go easy on him. Nothing reckless.

“I dare you to drink mustard for as long as you can handle.” Jinora lets go of his hand and giggles. I’m glad she’s completely sober. If she wasn’t, Coach Tenzin would quite literally murder all of us.

After thirty minutes, the game’s still going strong, and I was forced to have one more drink throughout it. Even Asami was dared to drink, even though she's driving later, but she ends up being fine.

Eventually Opal looks at me and Asami and points out, “Asami, you’re still on Korra’s lap.”

She looks back at me, shock written on her face, and scoots back off my lap. A few people around us laugh, and I scratch the back of my head, but I can’t help but think, ‘please stay’.

“Oh, gosh, I’m sorry,” she laughs.

I just shrug, slightly too slugged out to be as flustered as I normally would. “I was fine,” I say with a chuckle.

She stays next to me, but she doesn’t make an effort to leave my direct side. 

I catch her shivering. “Hey, you cold?”

She blushes lightly and looks down. “Yeah, a little.”

I wrap an arm around her and she presses into my side. I can feel a familiar warmth in my stomach and look to Bolin, who’s grinning like he just won an argument.

The game abruptly 20 minutes later, after Varrick, who’s absolutely baked, jumps into the pool fully clothed. Mako grudgingly offers to prepare a warm bath so that the guy doesn’t get hypothermia, and Iroh take a break to restore the fire and check the supply.

“Hey, we’re out of drinks,” Iroh calls from the snack table.

A few people groan, even though it’s probably for the best. But Asami just offers to get some. “My dad isn’t home right now, he’s on some business trip, and we have plenty. Plus, I only live, like, ten minutes away.”

Everyone generally agrees that it’s a good idea, and Asami detaches herself from my side and looks at me. “You coming with?”

I nod. She gets up, and I follow suit, but stumble on my way up and into her arms.

“Uh, sorry, hehe,” I laugh. She rolls her eyes but chuckles, and leads me to her car.

Once we’re on the road, she says, “I don’t really wanna get drinks. I mean, I guess I have to, since I promised. I just wanted to get out of there for a minute. It can get overwhelming, having to constantly talk to people and pretending to like the way shitty beer tastes.”

I laugh, but raise an eyebrow. “Can’t argue with that. But you wanted me with you?”

“Well...yeah.”

I look at her. “Why?”

She laughs. “Have you seen yourself? You’re so cool, and fun to talk to, and pretty.”

She thinks I’m pretty?!

I stutter, failing to find a response. “But...what?”

“Oh my god, Korra. Come on. One, you play hockey, that’s badass as hell. Two, you’re a genuine person, I can tell. You're talented and I wish I had talked to you earlier.”

“Yeah, me too,” I say, significantly quieter than before.

Asami stops at a light. “Well, then why didn’t you?”

I exhale. “I don’t know. You’re just so damn beautiful and smart. And everyone likes you. And I’m kinda dumb, and I’m just me, so why would you ever wanna talk to me?” And I’ve been horribly in love with you since freshman year, I think to myself.

“Korra, of course I want to talk to you. And, you really think that?”

My face heats up, and I hope she doesn’t notice. “Uh, yeah?”

She laughs. “You’re sweet. I’m serious, I want to talk to you. I’m glad we’re talking now.”

“Same,” I smile.

She thinks I’m pretty!

\---

She unlocks her front door, and lets me inside. The inside is just as beautiful as the outside. It’s a massive gated colonial house. Crazy old and crazy fancy.

“Holy shit, your place is nice.” I say.

“It’s too big,” she grumbles. “Sometimes I wish we were just like everyone else. A big place like this gets boring, especially when you’re alone all the time.”

I look at her, and she actually looks almost sad. “I never thought of it like that,” I admit. “I’d always figured it’d be nice, having this much money and space.”

She shrugs. “I mean, of course it’s nice and I’m ridiculously grateful that I have what I have. It can just be...lonely.”

Without even thinking about it, I give her hand a squeeze. She smiles, and leads me to her kitchen, where she grabs two six-packs of beer and the last bit of a bottle of vodka.

“Think this will be enough?”

I snort. “It better be. Most of those guys don’t need any more to drink.”

Asami laughs. “Yeah, you’re right.”

When we get back in the car, she looks at me. “Do you have a ride home? I can drive you home later if you want. I don’t want you driving yourself.”

“I can’t drive. Don’t know how.” I wait a beat, then drop my jaw and gape like a moron. “Hey, I’m not that drunk!”

“You’re not that drunk, but too much to drive. Plus, I’m gonna guess you’re gonna have one more drink.” She defends.

“Can’t argue with that.”

“So, what you’re saying is, I’m giving you a ride,” she smirks.

I inhale. “Uh.”

“That’s a yes.”

“Yes?”

She backs out of the driveway laughing, and my heart skips a beat when she puts her hand behind my headrest to look behind her. 

Holy shit I’m so head over heels for her, it’s ridiculous.

\---

Nobody objects when Varrick suggests a few rounds of never have I ever, even the people that hate him. We decide to do it with drinks, but the more responsible people (and the way-too-blasted people) use soda or water.

Asami is still right by my side, her cold hands clutched close to me. Earlier she called me a “human furnace” and decided I’d be her human furnace for the rest of the night. I have zero objections.

“Alright, I guess I’ll kick it off! Never have I ever jumped out of a moving car!” Varrick cries.

His girlfriend, Zhu Li, clears her throat. “Honey, it’s supposed to be something you’ve never done.”

He lifts an eyebrow and laughs. “What? That’s ridiculous! I’ve done everything!”

“How about you skip?” Mako asks, getting a few laughs. He grumbles something under his breath and I snicker. 

“Okay, okay. Never have I ever done DMT.” Varrick says.

No one takes a sip, thank God. I don’t want the freshmen getting any ideas.

Bolin is next. “Hmm...Never have I ever stolen something.”

A few people drink, some surprising, some not. Varrick drinks, not surprising at all. Kai drinks, also not surprising. He’s a real good kid, but from what Jinora’s told me, he’s...well, he's grown a lot in the past couple years. Mako drinks, which would be surprising if I didn’t know the reason behind it. 

“Mako?!” One of the guys asks.

He shrugs it off. “It’s not important. I haven’t done anything like that in years. Next question.”

He and Bolin were homeless for a couple years after their parents died. They moved in with their grandma once some government dudes found them and found relatives, and I met Bolin soon after. It’s not something they bring up, so not many people know.

Opal’s next, and she says, “Oh, jeez. Um, never have I ever skinny dipped?”

I take a sip, and Asami turns to me. “Holy cow, what?”

I chuckle. “Not telling. Not with anyone though.” I’m not sure why I feel the need to clarify

She smiles. “I’m not judging.” Then she takes a sip, and my stomach flips.

Don’t think about it Korra don’t think about it Korra don’t think about it Korra. 

“Not with anyone, though,” she adds, and leans against me. And I go right ahead and surprise myself. For the first time, I really lean back into her. It may be because I’m tired, it may be because my head feels fuzzy from the drinks, it may be because I’m not thinking right and I’ll overthink this later. But wow, is she comfy to lean on.

Baatar Jr. is technically next, but he has practically excluded himself and Kuvira from the game. They both motion to skip simultaneously and go back to whatever they were talking about.

Mako is up next. He looks at me and grins. “Never have I ever caused a car accident.”

“Oh, fuck you, Mako!” I yell and take a slightly too big sip. Asami laughs next to me, and I join her. 

“You really can’t drive, huh?”

I grin and scratch my neck. “Not really.”

We continue to go around the circle, but I yawn and bury my head closer into Asami’s shoulder. She seems to take note, because as I doze off, I can feel one of her arms supporting me.

\---

“Hey, sleepyhead. Wake up.” A soft voice tells me.

I groan. My head feels extremely fuzzy. “What?”

“You dozed off for a couple minutes. People are starting to go home.” 

Reluctantly, I open an eye. Asami is kneeling beside me, holding me up with one arm.

“C’mon, Korra, you’re a little heavy,” she laughs.

My eyes widen. “Oh, my god, Asami I am so-” I blurt, nearly incoherently.

“You’re fine, I promise. But I think I should get you home so you can go to sleep, okay?”

I nod, and try to get up. It fails miserably and I fall into Asami. My whole body heats up a million degrees as he holds me and gets up with me in her arms.

“I’m so sorry,” I mumble as she half-leads, half-carries me to her car.

“Why are you sorry?”

“You barely know me and you have to put up with me,” I laugh humorlessly.

She smiles. How can she actually be this nice? “You think I’ve never been shitfaced before? Trust me, it could be worse. And you’re overreacting, Korra. I’m happy to walk you to my car.”

I do my best to help her in getting me to the car, and as I keep walking it gets much easier.

She hops in on the drivers’ side and starts the engine. “You’re gonna have to tell me where you live.”

“You know the really old seafood restaurant off of South Beech street?” Asami nods. “It’s, like, six houses down from that.”

“Gotcha.”

The drive is awfully quiet, and I get around to thinking. I’m actually talking to Asami. Hell, we practically cuddled...holy shit. Did I just ruin any chance of being friends? What if she thinks I'm weird? What if she regrets it tomorrow? What if we go to school on Monday and act like it never happened? What if-

“You okay?”

“Huh?” I mutter.

She looks over at me briefly. “Your face is all scrunched up.”

I guess my eyebrows are knit pretty close together. I relax my face. “Yeah, fine, just uh...thinking.”

“About?”

I start to stutter. “Oh, um, nothing, just...well, just, I-”

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want,” she says quickly. “Just...if you need. You know?”

“It’s okay.”

It’s awkwardly quiet again, until she breaks the silence a second time.

“I really did have fun tonight.”

Oh.

“I did, too. A lot.”

She smiles, and in the darkness I can’t tell if she flushes or not. “So...on Monday?”

“Yes!” I say, a little too excitedly. “Uh, sorry. Yeah. Still...close, you mean?”

She nods sheepishly. Holy damn, Asami Sato, nervous? “That’s...I’m glad. I know we’ve never really been close.”

“I’d like to be,” I blurt, then curse myself. I have to shut up before I confess my feelings or something stupid like that.

But she just reaches over and gives my arm a squeeze. “Yeah. Same.”

I’m actually sad when she takes her hand off of my arm, but I grin regardless. I’m in the car with my hopeless crush, and she’s telling me she wants to be close.

I steal a glance at her, and in the soft, dim light cast by the moon and the street lights, she almost looks like she’s glowing. Her eyes are more green, her face is more soft, she’s so...god, she’s so pretty.

She meets my eyes, and I flush and look away. But I turn back when we’ve stopped at a light, and she looks at me as well. And I feel like I might as well get lost in her gaze.

The light changes and reflects green on our skin, and she shakes her head and turns back to the road. “Uh…” she laughs nervously, and I join her.

When she pulls next to my house, my heart drops. “Oh, shit, my parents are home! They weren't supposed to be!”

Asami notices the car in our driveway. “Oh. Yeah, that’s not good.”

I turn to her after we get out of the car and stumble while closing the door. “How faded do I look?”

She raises an eyebrow. “Do you want me to be nice?”

“Shit. Uh…”

She looks at my house. “The lights aren’t even on.”

After I look at my living room window, I see she’s right. “Okay. Well, they could still be awake.”

“You think they’d be outside of their room, though?” She asks.

I shake my head. “They’d either be in the living room, or in their room.”

“Okay. I can walk you to your room if you’d like,” she offers.

“No, that’s fine. Shit, you’ve already done so much for me today,” I laugh.

She shrugs. “No biggie. Can I do one other thing at least, then?” I raise an eyebrow, and she laughs and shakes her head. “Give me your phone.”

I fish it out of my hoodie pocket and hand it over to her. When she hands it back, I see a new contact: “asami :D”, and under it is her number.

“Call me?” She asks, and I nod almost too excitedly.

We stand awkwardly for a few seconds, and then I guess we just mutually decide that it isn’t weird to hug. It doesn’t last long, but it makes my heart do cartwheels for the millionth time tonight.

I stumble as quietly through my house as possible after she leaves. I can hear the TV in my parents’ bedroom, but no conversation. When I finally make it to my bed, I collapse. My dog Naga curls up next to me and I subconsciously start stroking her fur, and as exhausted as I am, and as much as the world feels like it’s spinning, I can’t help but grin like an idiot.

What a night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone liked that! I know I'm very jealous of Korra. I wish the girl I like and I could cuddle like drunk idiots. Anyway, hope everyone liked it! Feel free to leave any thoughts or suggestions!  
> Later bugs,  
> Evin


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ehehe sorry it's been a hot second I'm falling behind in school :) I should be doing a pre-calc test right now but I'm not so here's this

If someone asked me for a five word horror story, I’d write “Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.”

Monday actually started off alright. Asami greeted me at my locker in the morning, I walked her to her homeroom, and best of all, it didn’t feel awkward.

I actually thought I was on top of the world. I was completely caught up in my own feelings, in recounting everything that had happened last Saturday, and just caught up in Asami in general. Everything felt like a dream and it’s actually a fucking fever dream.

My classes all flew by. I didn’t pay attention to a single thing at all. Anytime Bolin asked me anything, I barely regarded him...God, I’m such an asshole. I was so fucking caught up in my own daydreams. But there was the nagging “uh oh!” in the back of my head, because Asami proceeded to ignore me for the rest of the day.

I was kinda spacey in practice that day. Our assistant coach, Lin Beifong (Opal’s grumpy aunt), actually pulled me aside after practice, so apparently it was noticeable.

But I guess I really didn’t give a shit, because the same thing happened the next day.

Asami didn’t really talk to me on Tuesday. Half of me told myself I shouldn’t be surprised, the other half wanted to pity myself. All day at school, I stopped thinking. Less of it was infatuation, it was starting to get taken over by self-doubt (what if she’s actually homophobic? What if my parents will hate me? Did I actually piss Beifong off that much?) We took a quiz in Algebra 2, and I didn’t even finish it. Practice was rough, too. I rub my head thinking about it.

“Korra, watch-”

The puck connected with my head, knocking my helmet sideways and making my right ear ring.

“What the hell? Are you even paying attention?”

No, I wasn’t.

By the end of practice, I had gotten way too many comments like that, and way too many pucks connecting with my body.

After practice, Tenzin pulled me aside. Then he drilled me on everything Beifong had already told me. 

“Korra, were you even here today?”

“I...of course I was?”

“Are you sure? Because you sure as hell didn’t act like it! You’re a good player. Really good. I want to help you get to where you can be. But that was...listen, there’s a game on Thursday. I need you present--mentally--in practice tomorrow. That’s not a request.”

I walked home an hour later than I normally would have and didn’t even do any homework that night.

I didn’t talk to Asami on Wednesday. I had convinced myself the night before that it’s my fault I’m messing everything up, and if I didn’t have feelings for her, then everyone else would be better off. Besides, she hadn’t really talked to me the day before. She probably hated me anyway.

God, did it suck. I made eye contact with her during lunch and it was like I was getting the wind knocked out of me. She got up, maybe to talk to me, maybe to leave. Maybe she was mad at me. She definitely should be.

I didn’t stay in the cafeteria long enough to find out. 

I hadn’t ever eaten lunch on the floor in an empty hallway before. Even on my worst days. I was never lonely enough. But most of the team didn’t want to talk to me, they were mad that I didn’t have my shit together the day before the first tournament game, and I couldn’t even bring myself to look at Bolin because I felt like such a colossal douchebag. And I could tell that they were frustrated. It was evident in their own playing the day before during practice.

Seventh period for me is SAT literacy prep. I hate it, I always have. But my teacher was giving me extra shit that day since I didn’t have the homework done and I didn’t pay attention the day before either. I tried ignoring her. Then I tried waving her off. And then, like a real genius, I told her to fuck off.

“Principal’s office. And I’ll be seeing you after school.”

I spent the rest of 7th period in Mr. Raiko’s office, sulking. At one point I pulled my phone out and was tempted to text Asami. But she probably didn’t want to talk to me. Then I was tempted to text Bolin, the one person who I was sure I really, truly loved (besides my family), but he had every reason to be mad at me, too. I’m his best friend, and I had ignored him, and I was letting him and the team down.

After school I didn’t have enough time to tell Tenzin I’d be late. I had to go straight to SAT prep. She was too busy to give me a thorough punishment, so she had me wash the desks and write some shit on the board 100 times, and she let me know she’d call my parents later, and I didn’t care, I just wanted to get out of there.

Coach Tenzin sure wasn’t happy when I showed up to practice late, but I was too pissed to care. Instead of being mentally absent, I was an asshole on the ice. I got in an argument at least 3 times. The last time, and the worst time, was with Mako.

“Korra, what the hell are you doing?”

“Oh, sorry, thought this was hockey practice.”

“Yeah, not fight club!”

“Bite me, Mako.”

“Korra, would you shut up? What the hell’s gotten into you?”

That nearly broke me. But it didn’t. The dam wasn’t quite ready to crumble.

My dad gave me an extensive lecture that night, one that I didn’t really want to hear. My mom pulled the whole, “I’m not mad, just disappointed,” which was almost worse.

Bolin called me, and I didn’t answer. I didn’t have the heart to completely ditch him, so I texted him, “not feeling it, pls leave me alone 4 now, sry”. It didn’t feel like enough, and I felt like the world’s biggest ass, but if I talked to him I’d either start yelling or start crying and both of those options sounded terrible.

Then Thursday, the peak of the shitstorm. Our first tournament game. 

What a mess.

Our whole team was pissed, and it was mostly toward me, but there was a general frustration that affected everyone. Except really, our loss was all my fault. I gave the other team four power plays over the three periods. Got pretty well acquainted with the penalty box.

Toward the end of the game, I made eye contact with Asami, and my heart cracked. I let up, and some dude on the other team with shoulders the size of Russia slammed into me and stole the puck.

We lost 3-0. The bus ride back to the school was silent. Bolin and I sat awkwardly next to each other. I fought the urge to cry the entire time. 

When I got home, Naga curled into my lap. She’s way too big to do that, but she’s one of those big dogs that thinks she’s little. And it was the closest I’d felt to being cared for all week. Not once had someone asked me if I'm okay. I guess Bolin might have, if I didn't keep pushing him away.

Which brings me to today. Friday.

Asami tried talking to me in Latin. I told her I couldn’t talk. I hate that I did that, and I couldn’t see myself doing anything else. But I can’t stand it. I can’t stand liking her, knowing there’s no way she could like me back. And for the first time since I was fourteen, I can’t stand myself for liking girls.

Bolin kept trying to talk to me. Just telling me things. He knows me. He knows I’m not gonna tell him what’s wrong. So he told me about what his grandma made for dinner, he told me about this ridiculous anatomy quiz he took, he told me about something adorable that Pabu had done. I couldn’t respond more than an incoherent mumble each time, but I didn’t have the heart to ignore him anymore. So I let him talk to me, still feeling like the biggest idiot out there.

We’re in practice now. It’s been two hours straight of drills. My legs hurt, my head is stuffy, and I just want to throw myself into the bleachers and cease to exist for a little while. Oh, and Tenzin is not happy. Not in the slightest.

“If you guys want to make it in the next round, you have to win the next game. Not another disaster like yesterday.” He says for the hundredth time.

“Why don’t you just kick Korra off,” Baatar mumbles loud enough for me to hear, something he definitely did on purpose.

I throw my stick to the side and skate over to him. “Oh yeah, Baatar? Really?”

He glares at me. “Yes. Really. It’s your fault we lost. You haven’t done shit for a week. You handed out points like Girl Scout cookies.”

A few people laugh. I shove him, and he shoves me back.

“Come on, Baatar! You wanna start shit? Let’s start it!”

He pushes me even harder, and it’s too quick for me to catch my balance, and I fall backwards. I’m up instantly, but it’s humiliating.

Mako skates up to us.

“Cut it out, both of you.”

I turn to him. “Are you kidding? Did you hear him? He started this shit! I can’t believe you’re taking his side!”

Mako holds his hands up in defense. “I’m not trying to take sides-”

“Damn, it really looked like it.”

Baatar glares at me. Mako looks sternly at me. Suddenly I’m extremely aware of not just his, but everyone’s eyes on me. Tenzin looks on the verge of...exploding? Giving up?

It’s my fault.

It’s literally all my fault.

“Fine. If you guys don’t want me anymore, then you got it. You’re rid of me.” I take off my helmet and throw it at Baatar, and skate over to the exit. Bolin leaves the goal to come up to me, and he’s about to say something, but I interrupt him.

“Not now, Bolin. Please.” It’s all I can do to hold the dam together, just another ten minutes, so I can be alone when it breaks.

\---

(Asami’s POV)

Fuck physics.

I should love physics. I’m going into engineering. But, Christ, if I have to memorize one more formula, I might lose it. Call me the de Vega of engineering.

I don’t really need the extra study time. I have all the books at home, I don’t need the outdated ones from the school library. And I have a computer that I can use just fine. But I need to be away from my dad, at least until he forgets.

Even though he’s probably not going to forget.

That being said, a break is well in order. I can’t focus for another minute. The words on the computer are swimming together. The textbooks are just slabs of mathematical bullshit at this point. There’s too much on my mind.

I look around to be sure that no one will take my place, then get up to use the bathroom. I don’t need to. But there’s no other excuse to move my legs that I can think of.

Outside the bathroom door, I hear something that I don’t expect to. The stall doors are slamming. Someone’s crying. Angry crying, from the sounds of it. I almost leave, ready to walk upstairs into the Spanish hall to use the bathroom, when I hear her voice.

“Korra, you moron. You fucked it all up.”

Korra.

The past few days have been weird. I guess I’m sort of to blame. I went from holding her and cuddling with her and practically telling her how hot I think she is last weekend, to ignoring her in the middle of the day Monday. It’s just, after the voicemail my dad sent me…

But when I tried to explain it the other day, she didn’t let me. Which I understood. She had every right to feel hurt. But there must have been more going on. She wasn’t at lunch anymore, she wasn’t talking to any of her friends. The game last night…

I constantly find myself wishing my relationship with her wasn't so complicated. I’ve liked her since I was a Sophomore, but I was too dumb and had too much internalized homophobia and fear to confront it. And then I dated Mako, but part of me thinks that was just a way to make myself feel better. I kinda confronted myself last year and admitted that I was into Korra, but I’ve never been able to act on it. So I’ve been awkwardly flirting from a distance while too scared to actually talk to her.

And then last Saturday happened and bingo, I’m a hopeless mess and I’ve been too scared to talk to her because I might do something irrational, like tell her I like her, and then maybe she’ll hate me or maybe my dad will disown me or maybe--

Another stall slams and I hear what sounds like a mixture of a muffled yell and a muffled sob.

‘Get over yourself, Asami,’ I think. ‘Just be a good person...or something.’

I open the bathroom door and walk in, trying to hold on to any kind of confidence, but when I see her, my breath catches in my throat and I stop.

She looks tired. The awful kind. She’s crying. She still has her pads from practice, they’re on the ground, and her skates sit beside the pads. She hides her hand behind her, but I already saw that it’s slightly bruised. 

But, my heart still skips a beat, because above all, it’s Korra, and as collected as I try to be at any given moment, she tends to occupy every part of my mind whenever she’s around, and also a lot when she isn’t.

A few moments pass before I’m able to say, “hi.”

“Hi,” she responds.

Then, without saying anything, she practically falls forward and hugs me.

I hold her at first. Then I start rubbing circles into her back with my thumbs, and then my whole hand. She cries into my shoulder the whole time.

When her breathing finally starts slowing down, I whisper, “Do you want to tell me what’s wrong?”

“I messed it up,” is her response.

“Messed what up?”

“The team hates me, they don’t want me anymore. Bolin probably hates me, I’ve been such a dick to him. And you probably hate me.”

I feel my heart fall. “Korra...why would I hate you?”

She tries to answer, but I can tell she can’t bring herself to.

“Hey, it’s okay. Can I make a suggestion?”

She nods.

“I’ll talk to Tenzin. Get you out of practice. Just for today. Then we can go on a drive. I’ve had enough studying for today, anyway. Sound okay?”

After a few seconds, she nods again, and I help her gather her things and lead her out of the bathroom.

She can’t bring herself to confront Tenzin or the rest of the hockey team again. Whatever happened, it must have been bad. So I leave her by the rink entrance, giving her my Latin notes to look at (I know she won’t, but I feel like I need to give her something to distract herself with), and enter the mediocre, half-sized and half-assed ice rink that the team uses to practice.

The team is skating drills. I can feel the tension in the air. Iroh is running the drill, and Tenzin is outside the rink, sitting on a bench, head in his hands.

“Um, Tenzin?” I call softly.

He looks up. He seems stressed, but almost relieved to see me. “Is she okay?”

I shake my head. “I’m not sure. What happened?”

“It’s best if she tells you,” he says. “What did you come for? I’m guessing it doesn’t have to do with creative writing.”

I laugh softly. “You’re right, it doesn’t. I was wondering if I might be able to steal Korra for the rest of practice? I don’t think she’s gonna be able to continue today.”

Tenzin nods. “That’s alright. I would have called her mother to pick her up, anyway. But I imagine it’ll be better that she goes with you. Tell her we...tell her I still want her here.”

Oh?

“I’ll be sure to. Thank you, Tenzin.”

He nods firmly. “Of course. I’ll see you Monday.”

I wave and head back for the hall. 

What did he mean, he still wants her there? And why is he sure that Korra would be better talking with me than her mother?

Korra is pacing back and forth when I enter into the hallway. She looks up at me.

“Good to go,” I give her a thumbs-up. “You’re excused for the rest of today. And Tenzin also wanted me to tell you that he still wants you there.”

She inhales sharply and closes her eyes, but I can almost see some of the fear leave her. It makes me happy. I don’t want to see her upset. She’s too perfect...

“What did he mean by that? If you don’t mind me asking.”

She motions with her hand. “Later. In the car. I want to get out of here first.”

\---

It’s not until we’re a good 10 minutes away from the school that she begins talking about what’s been going on.

“I haven’t been present this past week,” she starts. “I mean, I was okay at first. Like, I didn’t feel guilty or like I was spiraling yet. But it got out of control almost instantly.”

I pull into an empty space by the woods on the side of the road. “Keep going, I just want to park somewhere so I can listen better rather than focusing on the road.”

“Actually, I’d prefer to stand outside the car if that’s okay?” She asks. I nod and unlock the doors.

“Continue,” I say as we sit on a log about 15 feet from my car.

“I was spacey the first practice, and people weren’t really happy about it. And, um, I kinda thought...someone...was mad at me.” She means me. “So on Tuesday I was even more out of it, which got people even more upset at me, which made me feel more guilty and angry and my teammates and I were just fighting and we couldn’t even get our shit together for long enough to practice anything substantial...and it was my fault we lost the game yesterday...and my fault the team is the way it is.”

“No it isn’t,” I try to tell her.

“Yes it is! Baatar said it. Everyone else was thinking it.”

Of course that prick said something. “Ignore Baatar, he’s an idiot, he doesn’t know what he’s saying. You guys lost a game. You maybe didn’t have the greatest week in hockey. That doesn’t mean you’re useless as a player.”

“But they’re better off without me,” she countered.

“That’s not true. You just had a rough week, is all.”

She sighs, and I put my hand on her back. She stiffens, then relaxes again, and there’s a slight redness in her face, but I remind myself that it’s probably from the November cold. 

Don’t get your hopes up, Asami.

“What made you get so out of it on Monday to begin with?” I ask.

Now her face is noticeably, deep red. She begins to stumble on her words. “Uh, well, it was...someone, and uh-”

“Was it last Saturday?” I ask.

“...Possibly. A little.”

My heart picks up its pace. “What about it?” I ask, my voice much softer than before.

“Well...you.”

“Me?” 

She leans in to me a little. At this point, her eyes have locked with mine. There’s an ocean of blue with emotions that I can’t even begin to untangle, but somewhere in them is a glint of...something. Something that isn’t depressing and puts caffeinated butterflies in my stomach, something that I want to latch onto and amplify.

Possibly the same something that I’m feeling?

“Yeah. Um, just the way we talked...and what we...did?”

I laugh a little and place my hand over hers. “Is that all you were thinking about?”

“I was worried...it was too much. That I’d scared you off.” She admits.

I shake my head. “Korra, you couldn’t.”

“Well, I thought I did. I was worried you might hate me. And if you didn’t yet, then eventually you would.”

“Why would I ever hate you?” I question.

“Because I...I like you,” she breathes, and fuck skipping a beat, my heart’s skipping the entire album. She seems to pick up on a few things. The fact that my hand has wandered to her thigh. The redness in my face.

“Korra…” I whisper.

“Did I ever tell you I’m bi?” She asks, the slightest hint of a smirk playing at her lips.

I shake my head. “You never told me anything.”

“Well, I am.”

“Did I ever tell you I’m bi?” I respond, and her eyes widen. “I told you that I also enjoyed Saturday night. I like talking to you.”

“I like talking to you, too,” she says. “Obviously.”

“And I like being with you,” I add.

She presses her side closer to mine. “Is that all you like?”

I answer that by closing the distance between us. It’s a soft kiss, a fairly short one, but when we look at each other again, she’s completely flustered.

Worry creeps in. “Oh, shit, was that too quick-”

She interrupts me by kissing me again, and this one lasts longer. Every nerve inside me feels like it’s on fire, and I smile against her lips. And holy shit, I finally get to feel her lips.

She rests her forehead against mine, and breaks away to whisper, “So, are you flirting with me or something?”

I laugh. “Korra, I have been for over a year now.”

“Shit...really?”

“Was my unwavering happiness around you not enough to show that I’m into you?” I joke.

“Was my idiocracy not enough?” She counters.

She grins and kisses me one more time, and maybe things were rough before, but right now, they couldn’t be better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I was, like, 13, all of my fanfics and stories had a main character that was morbidly depressed because ur boy was also morbidly depressed so now that I'm less overdramatic I find myself writing, you know, normal person problems. Still, part of me worries that I didn't do Korra's week-long spiral well enough. Like, who goes from "ehehe I'm in love and straight vibin" to "wow I ruin everything" but on the other hand, haha I do that. So idk, tell me what you think and ooooooh smoochy smoochy! Don't worry, I'm not gonna rush their relationship. It'll be cute :)  
> Also, someone laugh at my de Vega joke please ;-; it's not even that funny I just want to know who's also a nerd  
> Discord notifications shut the fuck up challenge  
> Later bugs,  
> Evin


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More notes later, but this has some filler feeling. Still nice though :) kinda cute. And still important. Although definitely not my favorite. Okay shut up Evin. Enjoy.

(Korra’s POV)

My mind still hasn’t untangled everything that happened.

First Asami didn’t talk to me. Then she found me crying in the bathroom and not only rebuilt the dam, but got me to reconsider quitting the team. Then she took me on a drive.

Then she kissed me.

I have to keep biting my cheek just to make sure I’m awake and this isn’t one long, extensive dream.

I turn to her. The sun is on the horizon, making her face glow golden. She looks like a goddess of dark academia that was bathed in sun. How the hell can I be so lucky as to have someone this perfect like me back?

She meets my eyes and smiles, and I return it sheepishly.

“You’re cute,” she laughs. “How are you feeling?”

“I keep making sure I’m not imagining this,” I say without hesitation, and she laughs.

“Yeah. Well, you aren’t, I promise. But besides that. I know you had a rough day. You feeling better?”

I nod. “Yeah. I just feel bad about the team still, and Bolin...Oh, shit, Bolin!”

Jeez, I’ve been such a dick to him...

“From what I know about Bolin, he’s the most forgiving guy on the planet. And you’re his best friend. If you talk to him, he’ll forgive you.” She says. “Text him now.”

“What should I say?” 

She shrugs. “Just tell him you’d like to call him tonight.”  
I think about it for a second, then flip my phone open and pull up our messages, starting a new one. It takes me a second to think about how I want to approach the message.

“Hey...can i call u tonite”

He responds almost instantly. “Of course :)”.

It doesn’t instantly fix everything. Still, I smile, because I know I have the chance to try. And I’d be lying if I didn’t say it’s the most Bolin thing ever to instantly forgive. Even sometimes when he shouldn’t.

“I take it that went well?” Asami asks.

I nod. “As well as it could have.” 

Asami places a hand over mine, causing my insides to freeze up and melt somehow simultaneously (seriously, what the hell), and she mumbled a soft “I’m glad”. 

It’s a few peaceful minutes before she says, “Hey, do you need to be home at a certain time?”

Shit. I don’t want this to end, ever, although realistically I know I have to go home at some point tonight. “Uh, not really? I mean, legal curfew at 11:30 I guess.”

She checks the clock on her radio, reading 5:58. “I’m not quite sure I want to go home yet,” she admits (I couldn’t agree more). “Do you like Chinese food?”

I grin. “Who doesn’t?”

\---

She pulls into the parking lot of a small Chinese restaurant. Like, I mean small. We walk up the stairs into the restaurant and there’s literally 2 rooms plus a bathroom.

A short, older Chinese lady with hair that’s more salt than pepper and small reading glasses walks up to us and beams. “Oh, hello little Sato!” She muses in a fairly thick accent.

Asami smiles and takes the woman’s hand. “Hello, Mrs. Li. It’s wonderful to see you.”

“You’re so tall! Oh, you’ve grown so big. You look just like your mother.” Asami blushes, and I can see the sad warmth in her eyes at the mention of her mom. “Who is your friend?”

“Right! Uh, Mrs. Li, this is my...friend Korra.” She puts a hand on my shoulder and I smile, almost laughing to myself at the word "friend". We make brief eye contact and I can see that Asami's slightly flustered.

“Hello,” I turn back to the older woman and nod, but Mrs. Li is very friendly and takes my hand in both of hers.

“It is very nice to meet you, Korra. You are very strong!”

I laugh. What do I even say to that? “Uhm, thanks...I think. I’m a hockey player.”

“Do you think we could get a table, Mrs. Li?” Asami asks, politely moving the conversation forward.

Mrs. Li nods, letting go of my hand and grabbing two menus, then guides us to one of the three booths in the building.

Asami sits across from me, and we take our menus as Mrs. Li promises to be back with some tea in just a minute, then all but waddles into the kitchen.

“So, I’m guessing you’ve been here before,” I notice.

Asami laughs. “Yeah, just a little. Nah, I actually used to come here a lot when I was little. We kinda made it a thing. My mom’s family and the Li family knew each other. They attended the same temple. So I went here with my parents almost every other weekend, and Mrs. Li basically watched me grow up. But after my mom...after my mom died, my dad and I started going here less and less.”

I take her hand, noting how she’s choking up a little. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m surprised you took me here.”

She smiles. “I wanted to share it with you. Plus, I can just tell you’ll die for the dumplings.” We both laugh a little. “And I felt like...this place deserves to be a positive place. You know?”

“Well, I’m glad if I can help. And I love how much it means to you.”

Asami’s mother isn’t something that’s brought up a lot. Not by her, nor by anyone else. I mean, I’ve always known. I remember my parents talking about seeing it in the newspaper when I was five. “The wife of growing industrialist Hiroshi Sato was killed in an armed robbery”. And I can remember people bringing it up in middle school. But people have matured enough by now, and nobody really talks about it.

I can see just by Asami’s expression right now, how much her mom meant to her, still means to her. Doesn’t matter that it’s been nearly eleven years. I mean, hell, if my mom had died eleven years ago, I sure as hell wouldn’t be over it.

She closes her eyes, just for a moment, and when she opens them they have the usual composure that she seems to carry with her at all times. She gives my hand a soft squeeze.

“Thank you. And hey, you should check out the pork lo mein,” she nudges me with her leg under the table and I laugh.

Soon enough Mrs. Li places a pot of tea and two small cups on our table, and takes our orders.  
Asami sips her tea and laughs. “So, one summer when I was four, they had a nasty wasp problem here. Like, those things wouldn’t leave this place alone. Mrs. Li’s husband was on a ladder all the time, by the roof, getting rid of nests.”

I nod, listening, but also paying attention to her face. She’s right in front of me, but her mind is 2000 light years away, in a completely different time. All I can think about is how adorable it is, how her face lights up, like she’s little and carefree again.

“But they didn’t realize that some of the wasps had actually gotten in here and built a nest under that booth,” she points to the booth behind me. “We were here for dinner, and we had just gotten the tea so it was still piping hot. And god, I didn’t sit still as a child.”

“Seriously?” I ask. “But you’re so…”

“Yeah, I know. But baby me must’ve given my dad so many headaches, especially running around at his business meetings.”

I chuckle at the image of a young Asami running into a room of grumpy old auto businessmen.

“So anyway, I must have swung my legs a little two close to the nest, because one of the wasps decided that the backside of my knee was, like, optimal stinging position. Needless to say, there was hot tea in my lap.”

“Oh god, that sounds painful,” I wince, but still smile.

She nods, returning the smile. “Yeah. But I think the stares from the other families there were worse. Everyone just stopped talking to look at me.”

“Aww,” I laugh. “Poor baby.”

“Yes. Poor baby indeed. Thank god Mr. Li learned what Raid was.”

\---

The rest of dinner went just as nice. The food was phenomenal. Like, actually to die for. I mean, I’ll eat just about anything, but damn does that family make good food.

I learned that Mrs. Li’s son joins her in the kitchen, and her husband works there, too, when he isn’t painting houses. I heard stories about Asami’s mom, which made it obvious how Asami turned out to be so wonderful. From what she tells me, her mom was just as kind and smart.

She also mentions that she never goes here with any of her friends, and she never even went here with Mako, and that fills me with some kind of warmth because holy shit, I’m special? (But it’s also a little weird, because...well, Mako.)

After we eat, she insists on paying, and I have to remind myself that her dad is literally rich to keep from feeling bad. Then, after about 10 goodbyes, we leave the restaurant and walk back to Asami’s car, huddled close, because New England Novembers are cold, but they’re straight up brutal after the sun sets. All it takes is her shivering once and I give up my jacket for her.

We reach her car, and I’m ready to get in when she grabs my arm. 

We stand there for a moment, just holding each other’s hands and appreciating one another’s presence, our breath fogging up and mingling together in the air between us. Then, she pulls me close and does what I’ve been meaning to do. Her lips are warm despite the biting cold.

“I could get used to that,” I whisper when we pull apart.

She laughs. “Oh yeah?” Then she kisses me again, quickly. “Alright. Let’s get going, before someone sees us.”

“So...was this a date?” I manage to ask as we get in the car.

She smiles while gunning the engine. “Did you like it?”

I can tell I’m grinning like an idiot, but I’m past caring. “Is that even a question?”

\---

The phone barely even reaches the second ring before Bolin picks up.

“Korra!”

“Hey, Bolin.”

Just hearing his voice helps soothe the lump in my throat, but it’s still definitely there. I’ve never been great at apologies, and just talking to him reminds me of how much of an ass I’ve been.

“So, uh...I wanted to...apologize.”

“...Okay.”

He’s not questioning it. That’s how I can tell it’s absolutely necessary. If it wasn’t, he’d be going through his routine ‘oh no its fine I love you anyway hahaha!’  
“I’ve been an ass. I’ve been ignoring you, first of all, which is my number one dick move this week. You did nothing wrong, and I was just moody and...weird...and completely steamrolled over you and your feelings. And I’m sorry. I’m also sorry for being such a dick during practice, and also about the game, but I’m gonna have to readdress that later because I need to talk to the entire team about that.”

A few seconds pass by.

“Wanna come over tomorrow?” He asks. “I got that Paper Mario game that came out last year.”

I grin. The lump is gone. “Absolutely! Pancakes?”

“You bet.”

“So...you’re not mad?”

“No, but I am worried, so you’re gonna tell me what’s wrong tomorrow. But right now I’m just glad you called. And I’m also gonna waste all my minutes. I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Night, Korra.”

“Night, Bolin.”

He hangs up, and I feel a huge weight off my chest. I know that my best friend isn’t mad at me, and I get pancakes and Paper Mario tomorrow. I’m also gonna have to apologize to Mako tomorrow, but he’s so straightforward that I’m hoping it’ll go well.

I get up and wander into my living room. My dad’s watching some cheesy action movie, and I join him and absent-mindedly start wrestling for a rope with Naga.

“You seem happy,” my dad notices.

I shrug. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Well, it’s definitely better than seeing you mope around for the past few days.” he nags.

I roll my eyes, but there’s no animosity behind it. “Alright, whatever.”

He puts a hand up defensively. “I’m not judging. Just saying. I’m glad you’re feeling better, seeing ass you refused to tell me and Mom what was getting you so down.”

“I-”

“Just one thing. It’s not a boy, is it?”

God, if you only knew.

\---

Bolin’s grandma, ever so sweet, opens the door after I knock. 

“Good morning, Korra,” she smiles. “You’ve been coming over for nine years now. You don’t need to knock.”

“Morning, Yin. I know, I just...I dunno.”

She invites me in, and I put my shoes by the shoe rack to the left. “Bolin’s in the kitchen. Something about pancakes?”

I grin. “Yup.”

Bolin puts down the measuring cup when I walk into the kitchen and instantly hugs me. I don’t hesitate to hug him back.

We make pancakes and I explain everything. How Asami stopped talking to me, how I started falling behind in some of my classes, and how I felt completely stuck and stupid and unwanted when it came to hockey. But then I told him about yesterday, about Asami liking me back and our pretty-much-date.

I swear to god, he squeals like a little girl. I’d expect the sound to come out of Tenzin’s younger daughter, Ikki.

“Holy shitsticks Korra, that’s awesome!” He all but yells.

I laugh. “Alright, not so loud, it’s still 10 in the morning. But yeah, it is pretty awesome.”

“So are you guys, like, official?” He asks.

I shrug. “I’m...honestly not too sure. We didn’t say anything official, and I don’t want to rush Asami. And I’m also just scared to ask, not gonna lie. But we’re definitely something.”

He puts his hands on his hips and pretends to sniffle. I pretend not to notice that he’s getting flour all over his pajama pants. “I am so proud of you.”

I snicker and push his shoulder. “Ha-ha.”

“Oh, crap, eggs!” He remembers.

“Dipshit, how can you forget the eggs?”

“Hey, it’s a talent, you just don’t understand!” He protests.

Mako wanders into the kitchen, hair mashed to the left side of his head, and I almost make fun of him for it before I remember that the last time I talked to him was while I was yelling at him.

He stops when he sees me, but recovers and reaches for a bagel. “Hey. Korra.”

I scratch my neck. “Hey.” I can tell he’s waiting. “Um, I’m sorry.”

“For?”

What a dick. But I deserve that, and he deserves to hear me say it. “For blowing up at you. Especially around other people. And for being so completely absent during practice. And for fucking up the game.”

“We’ll bounce back. Nice to see you not all angry and depressed.”

I don’t reject when he pulls me into a patented Older Brother Mako hug. I didn’t even realize how much I needed things to be right again, but now they are and I’m so at home in the company of my best friends, free of guilt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, some fun facts because ehehe.  
> The restaurant is actually based on a restaurant in the city I live in. It's this really fuckin tiny Chinese restaurant. My friend once brought me there, with his (now ex) boyfriend. He went there when he was little and therefore was really familiar with it, which was what gave me the idea for Asami being really close with the owners of a little tiny Chinese restaurant, plus it gave me opportunity for realistic Yasuko backstory. Basically the Sato family and the Li family attended the same temple for worship when Yasuko was younger, so she knew the family well and hey, her dad started off as a small business, so the mutual understanding is good cause for friendship and support.  
> Also, Asami's little wasp story is literally just something that happened to me haha. My mom's family is Austrian, and there's this little village we visit every summer because my Oma is close with the owner of a hotel/gasthof there. When I was little once I was drinking hot chocolate and a wasp (aka satan bug) stung the underside of my knee and I got really fucking hot chocolate on my pants and it hurt and everyone was staring at me.  
> Fun things because it makes me feel like these things are more real :)  
> Anyway, hope you guys liked it! It felt really slow to me and it's not my favorite, but I also want to have more actual stuff, not just big event after big event, you know? Let me know your thoughts  
> Later bugs,  
> Evin


End file.
